MRT, UDA delays necessary to ensure Bumi agenda, says Teraju

By Shannon Teoh

August 22, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 — Putrajaya’s Bumiputera business co-ordinator Teraju has insisted that delays to big-money government deals are necessary to ensure that Bumiputera interests are protected.

The unit under the Prime Minister’s Department that co-ordinates the so-called Bumiputera Agenda said that revisions to pre-qualifying criteria for the RM50 billion Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project and sale conditions of prime land worth over RM2 billion by UDA Holdings were made to ensure “growth with equity.”

“It’s better late than sorry. After you dish out the contracts, how are you going to roll back?” Teraju chief executive Husni Salleh (picture) toldThe Malaysian Insider.

The government had eased the pre-qualification criteria for the MRT project to allow joint ventures, and made the minimum paid-up capital non-mandatory following complaints from Perkasa and the Malay Chamber of Commerce that conditions imposed were too restrictive.

A new company, MRT Co, has also taken over as the project owner from Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad (Prasarana) and this move could also ease procurement from Malay businessmen, said analysts.

The sale of 3.6 acres of land in Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur by UDA — a government agency tasked with encouraging Bumiputera participation in the urban economy — was also rejected by the Finance Ministry after the buyer, 54 per cent Bumiputera-owned Nadayu Properties, was considered not “Bumiputera” enough.

According to Teraju, a Bumiputera company is defined as one that has at least 35 per cent or 51 per cent Bumiputera ownership for public listed and private companies respectively.

However, they must also have Bumiputeras making up more than half of the staff and board members.

The Malaysian Insider also reported that a RM2 billion partnership deal to develop the Pudu Jail site with a China-based firm is also being held up by Putrajaya due to continued pressure by the hardline Malay rights lobby.

Although pressure from these right-wing groups is threatening to derail the Najib administration’s commitment to economic reforms, Husni said that “being inclusive in promoting growth as a whole... has to be taken into consideration if you want to move to the next level.”

He also insisted that “slowing down is not the right word to use” with regards to the new guidelines for the MRT project.

“Many projects do not get delayed but the big projects, you have to put it right. If you don’t do it properly, you can’t ask after that, where’s the Bumi agenda?

“You can’t stop it then. You have to recognise all the important elements and factors before you take off,” he said.

Husni also said that to ensure that these projects are executed smoothly, Teraju has been in consultation with stakeholders such as Prasarana, the government-owned company that will operate the MRT.